Since 01-19-07
Congress to Send Critics to
Jail, Says Richard Viguerie
Since 01-19-07
Richard A. Viguerie
CONTACT: Mark Fitzgibbons, (703)
392-7676
http://GrassrootsFreedom.com OR (703) 408-3775
9625 Surveyor Court, Suite 400
Manassas, Virginia 20110
FOR RELEASE January 16, 2007
Congress to Send Critics to Jail, Says Richard Viguerie
Congress Wants to Blame the Grassroots for Its Own Corruption
Manassas, VA. The following is a statement by Richard A. Viguerie, Chairman of
http://GrassrootsFreedom.com ,
regarding legislation currently being considered by Congress to regulate
grassroots communications:
“In what sounds like a comedy sketch from Jon Stewart’s Daily Show, but isn’t,
the U. S. Senate would impose criminal penalties, even jail time, on grassroots
causes and citizens who criticize Congress.
“Section 220 of S. 1, the lobbying reform bill currently before the Senate,
would require grassroots causes, even bloggers, who communicate to 500 or more
members of the public on policy matters, to register and report quarterly to
Congress the same as the big K Street lobbyists. Section 220 would amend
existing lobbying reporting law by creating the most expansive intrusion on
First Amendment rights ever. For the first time in history, critics of Congress
will need to register and report with Congress itself.
“That amendment was introduced by Senator David Vitter (R-LA). Senator Vitter,
however, is now a co-sponsor of Amendment 20 by Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT) to
remove Section 220 from the bill. Unless Amendment 20 succeeds, the Senate will
have criminalized the exercise of First Amendment rights. We’d be living under
totalitarianism, not democracy.
“The bill would require reporting of ‘paid efforts to stimulate grassroots
lobbying,’ but defines ‘paid’ merely as communications to 500 or more members of
the public, with no other qualifiers.
“On January 9, the Senate passed Amendment 7 to S. 1, to create criminal
penalties, including up to one year in jail, if someone ‘knowingly and willingly
fails to file or report.’
“I started GrassrootsFreedom.com to fight efforts to silence the grassroots. The
website provides updates in the legislation and has a petition to sign opposing
Section 220.
“Thousands of nonprofit leaders, bloggers, and other citizens have hammered the
Senate with calls in opposition to Section 220, which seeks to silence the
grassroots. The criminal provisions will scare citizens into silence.
“The legislation regulates small, legitimate nonprofits, bloggers, and
individuals, but creates loopholes for corporations, unions, and large
membership organizations that would be able to spend literally hundreds of
millions of dollars, yet not report.
“Congress is trying to blame the grassroots, which are American citizens
engaging in their First Amendment rights, for Washington’s internal corruption
problems.”
--30--
NOTE to EDITORS: Richard A. Viguerie pioneered ideological and political direct mail and has been called “the funding father of the conservative movement” for his role in helping build dozens of conservative organizations. He is the author of Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause (Bonus Books, 2006).